Ahadith (plural of Hadith) are
narratives which record the words, deeds and tacit approvals of the Prophet
Muhammad (sws). They are mostly akhbar-i ahad (isolate reports). It is
absolutely evident that they do not add to the contents of religion stated in
the Qur’an and Sunnah. In technical terms, they do not add any article of faith
or any deed to religion. In other words, it is outside the scope of Ahadith to
give an independent directive not covered by the Qur’an and Sunnah. However,
this is also a reality that the Hadith literature is the largest and most
important source which records the biography, history and the exemplary life of
the Prophet Muhammad (sws) as well as his invaluable explanations of various
issues of religion. Thus it occupies such great importance that no student of
religion can ignore it. It is because of this importance of Hadith that it is
essential to know the principles which help us in understanding them.

Before elaborating on these
principles, we will first have a look at the principles on the basis of which a
Hadith is accepted or rejected.

The Chain of Narration of Hadith

It is the chain of narration of a narrative which
makes it a Hadith that can be attributed to the Prophet (sws). In addition to
any hidden flaws in the chain of narration of a Hadith, the trustworthiness of
the narrators, their memory and the contemporaneousness of the narrators are the
three standards which should be kept in consideration in the light of the
material which the scholars of Hadith have painstakingly made available. This is
the standard which scholars of Hadith have put forth for the examination of the
chain of narration of a Hadith, and is so sound that no addition can be made to
it nor anything taken away from it.

Since attributing something suspect to the Prophet (sws)
can be of severe consequences in this world and in that to come, it is necessary
to apply this standard without any lenience and with absolute impartiality to
every narrative attributed to him. Only those narratives should be considered
acceptable which fully conform to this standard.1
Thus no narrative attributed to the Prophet (sws) even if found in primary works
as the al-Jami al-Sahih of Imam Bukhari, al-Jami al-Sahih of Imam Muslim and the
Mu’atta of Imam Malik can be accepted without application of this standard.

Text of a Hadith

After investigating the chain of narration of a
Hadith, the second thing which requires investigation is the text of a Hadith.
Although scholars of Hadith have left no stone unturned in investigating the
characters and biographies of the narrators and have spent a greater part of
their lives in this research, yet like every human endeavour, the natural flaws
which still exist in the narration of a Hadith2
requires that the following two things must always remain in consideration while
investigating the text of a Hadith:

1. Nothing in it should be against the Qur’an and
Sunnah

2. Nothing in it should be against established facts
derived from knowledge and reason

It has already been explained that in religion the
Qur’an is the mizan (the scale of truth) and the furqan (the distinguisher
between truth and falsehood). It is like a guardian of every religious concept
and it has been revealed as a barometer to judge between what is right and what
is wrong. Thus no further explanation is required of the fact that if anything
is against the Qur’an, then it must stand rejected.

Similar is the case of the Sunnah. Whatever religion
has been received through it is as certain and authentic as the Qur’an, as has
already been explained earlier. There is no difference between the level of
authenticity of the two. Just as the Qur’an is validated thought the consensus
of the ummah, the Sunnah is also determined from its consensus. Since this fact
is an absolute reality about the Sunnah, thus if a Hadith is against the Sunnah
and if there is no way out to resolve a conflict between the two, the Hadith in
consideration must necessarily be rejected.

Established facts derived from knowledge and reason
also have the same status in this regard. The Qur’an is absolutely clear that
its message is based on these established facts. Its arguments on such basic
issues as tawhid and the Hereafter are primarily based on these facts. It is the
requirements and demands of these facts which the Qur’an highlights through its
teachings. Every student of the Qur’an is aware that it presents these facts as
deciding factors for the message it puts forth. It presented them as the final
word both before the Idolaters of Arabia and the People of the Book. Those who
oppose these are regarded by it as people who follow their base desires. Thus
intuitive realities, historical truths, results of experience and observation –
all are discussed in the Qur’an in this very capacity. Hence how can a Hadith
which is against these facts regarded by the Qur’an as ones which distinguish
between the truth and untruth be accepted? It is obvious that it shall stand
rejected. All leading scholars of Hadith also hold this view. Khatib writes:

A khabr-i wahid cannot be accepted which is against
sense and intellect, is against an established and explicit directive of the
Qur’an, is against a known Sunnah or is against a practice which is observed
like the Sunnah or its conflict with some conclusive argument becomes absolutely
evident.3

Let us now take a look at the principles of
understanding the Hadith:

Literary Appreciation of the Arabic Language

Just as the Qur’an has been revealed in highly
literary Arabic, the language of the Hadith too is highly literary Arabic. There
is no doubt that a great number of Ahadith have not been transmitted in their
original words, yet whatever much has been preserved of the language of the
Prophet (sws) and his Companions (rta) is still enough for a keen student of the
Qur’an to distinguish it from other material. Like the Qur’an, the language of
the Hadith too has a certain standard which does not accept any adulteration of
material substandard to it. Thus it is necessary that by a continuous study of
its language, students of Hadith are able to acquire enough skill of the
language so as to reject narratives like الشّيْخُ وَ
الشَّيْخَةُ4 on the very basis
of the language used in it. Similarly, they should have no problems in
understanding the rather difficult style used in الْبِكْزُ
باِلبِكزِ5. This skill is also
required to solve difficulties posed by the syntax and morphology of the Arabic
language. A person should have a deep study of what the authorities of these
subjects have written. No one is able to solve the difficulties of Hadith unless
he is cognizant of the delicacies of the Arabic language and its various styles
and constructions.

Interpretation in the Light of the Qur’an

The Hadith should be interpreted in the light of the
Qur’an. The status occupied by the Qur’an has already been alluded to earlier.
It is the most definite and authentic record of whatever Muhammad (sws) did in
his status of a prophet and a messenger. Consequently, most topics covered in
the Hadith are related to the Qur’an the way a branch is related to a stem or
the way an explanation is related to the text it explains. Without a recourse to
the original text, it is obvious that its corollaries and explanations cannot be
understood. If all the mistakes in interpreting the Hadith are minutely
analyzed, this situation becomes abundantly clear. The incidents of stoning to
death in the times of the Prophet (sws), the assassination of Ka‘b Ibn Ashraf,
punishment meted out in the graves, narratives of intercession and directives as
أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أُقَاتِلَ النَّاسَ and (I have been
directed to wage war against these people)6مَنْ بَدَّلَ دِينَهُ فَاقْتُلُوهُ (Execute the person
who changes his faith)7 have become
issues which have caused a lot of confusion and have been subjected to
misinterpretation because they have not been understood by relating them to
their basis in the Qur’an.

In short, if this principal is kept in
consideration, a lot of perplexities are resolved in understanding the Hadith.

Understanding the Occasion of the Hadith

A Hadith must be understood with reference to the
instance and occasion of the topic it records. What was the occasion on which it
was said? What was the background in which it was said? Who were the addressees?
If one does not address these questions in interpreting a Hadith, on many
occasions one fails to get to the right interpretation. The Hadith
الأَئِمَّةُ مِنْ قُرِيْش (The rulers will be from the
Quraysh)8 is a famous narrative. By
the apparent words of this Hadith, scholars of our ummah have been led to
believe that a Muslim ruler must always be from among the tribe of the Quraysh.
If this is accepted then at least with reference to the political system there
remains no difference between Islam and Brahmanism. The basic reason in
misinterpreting this Hadith is the fact that this statement of the Prophet (sws)
related to the political situation which was to arise right after him; instead
of understanding this aspect, the directive stated in it was regarded to be an
independent directive of religion applicable for all times. There are numerous
such Ahadith in religion and they cover very important topics. It is essential
that they be understood by keeping in consideration this principle.

Study of all the Variant Texts

All the variant texts of a Hadith must be studied in
order to form an opinion about it. Many a time a person may form an opinion
about a Hadith by not studying its variants; however, once he deliberates on all
the variants his overall interpretation changes. One glaring example of this are
the Ahadith which mention the prohibition of pictures and portraits. If some of
the narratives are studied only, one can easily conclude that this prohibition
is absolute and every picture and portrait is prohibited in Islam. However, if
all the variants are collected and analyzed, it becomes evident that the
prohibition is regarding only those pictures which have been made for
worshipping. Many similar examples can be cited from the corpus of the Hadith.
Thus it is essential that if one is not satisfied from the apparent words of a
Hadith, one must gather and collate all its variants to form an opinion.

Reason and Revelation

It must be appreciated that reason and revelation
never contradict. Earlier on, while explaining the principles of acceptance or
rejection of a Hadith, it has been explained that religion is based on
universally established facts derived from knowledge and reason, and if a Hadith
appears to be contradicting these established facts, then it must be deliberated
upon repeatedly. However, summarily rejecting a Hadith, if it appears to be
against these facts is not the correct academic approach. Similarly, ignoring
these facts and accepting an insubstantial interpretation of the Hadith should
also not be the case. Experience shows that when a narrative is analyzed in the
correct perspective, then many a time no contradiction remains with these facts
and what is stated in the Hadith becomes very clear. This of course can only be
achieved when it is fully accepted that there can be no contradiction between
reason and revelation. The works of scholars who have kept this principle in
consideration speak volumes of how aptly they have been able to interpret a
Hadith. Thus one must always take into account this all important principle in
interpreting the Hadith.

(Translated from Ghamidi’s Mizan by Shehzad Saleem)

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1. The soundness of character of the Companions of the Prophet (sws), however is an exception and does not need the conformation of any standard. The Almighty Himself has borne witness to it in His Book. See The Qur’an, 3:110.